Continuous helical acrew press

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to a helical screw press particularly for the continuous pressing of the grape harvest comprising a static obturator positoned in the path of the pressed matter and located between a helical feed screw and a filter cylinder.

United States Patent [1 1 [11] 3,753,399 Dessoris Aug. 21, 1973 CONTINUOUS HELICAL ACREW PRESS [56] References Cited [76] Inventor: Rene Alfred Francois Dessoris, FOREIGN PATENTS OR TI S Cit du SoleiL- Les Fenouiilres, 821,476 11/1951 Germany 100/150 Aix-en-Provence, France 1,010,159 3/1952 France 100/148 [22] Filed: 1971 Primary ExaminerJohn Petrakes [21] App]. No.: 128,319 Assistant Examiner-Alan 1. Cantor AttorneyBryan, Parmeiee, Johnson & Bollinger [30] Foreign Application Priority Data [57] ABSTRACT Apr 22, 1970 France 7014631 The invention relates to a helical-Screw press particw [52] U S Cl loo/145 larly for the continuous pressing of the grape harvest [51] In} .0 .530) 3/02 comprising a static obmrator positoned in the p of [58] Fieid 145 146 the pressed matter and located between a helical feed screw and a filter cylinder.

4 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures Patcnted Aug. 21, 1973 Fig- ! Shanta-Shut 1 Patented Aug. 21, 1973 3,753,399

'3 Shah-lint I Fig. 3

Fig.1.

Patented Aug. 21, 1973 3,753,399

3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Fig 5 CONTINUOUS HELICAL ACREW PRESS The invention generally relates to continuous helical screw presses, in particular for the treatment of grape harvest and other application.

Continuous helical screw presses comprising a helical screw for conveying the matter to be pressed from a feed hopper toward a filter cylinder provided with an opening for the discharge of the pressed matter are already known. In continuous presses of this type and in the path of the helical screw, there are provided one or several metal discs called obturators, the aim of these discs being essentially to prevent the pressed matter from returning toward the feed hopper. The known obturators are in the form of a toothed wheel and the plane of rotation of this wheel is virtually perpendicular to the plane of rotation of the endless screw, in a way such that one tooth of the obturator engages with the helical screw in the space included between two adjacent ridges of the thread of the screw.

Such prior art means of obturating the screw path section has a number of disadvantages. First, the obturation of the screw path section of the endless screw by the blades of the obturator is incomplete. Thus, in order to allow the obturator to rotate, the blades of the obturator must not reach the bottom of the screw path of the endless screw. I

Therefore part of the matter is forced back toward the feed hopper. The obturator is driven by friction with the profile of the helix of the endless screw and as a result a large part of the motive force is lost because of friction on one hand, and on the other hand, there is wear of the screw and of one or more obturators at the points of contact.

The particular object of this invention is to overcome these disadvantages; it relates therefore to a continuous helical screw press particularly for the treatment of grape harvest, and in which there is a static obturator in the formof a disc provided with openings separated by solid segments, the obturator disc being located in the path of the screw, the plane of this obturator disc being perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the screw; in a way such that the thread of the screw is not in con-' tact with one or the other face of the obturator.

A continuous press according to the invention is illustrated but not limited in the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. I is a partial cross sectional view of the press;

FIG. 2 is a front view of the obturator,

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view along 3-3 in FIG. 2,

FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view along 4-4 in FIG. 2,

FIG. 5 is an exploded view of the elements of the endless screw and of the obturator.

According to the invention as illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 5, the press comprises, in the traditional manner, a helical screw which is given the general designation 1.

The object of this screw is to displace the matter to be pressed from a feed hopper 2 toward a filter cylinder 3. According to the invention, there is provided, in the path of the screw 1, a static obturator 4 in the form of a circular disc essentially perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the helical screw.

In the example of the application illustrated, the helical screw 1 consists of two distinct sections but driven simultaneously in a rotary movement. The purpose of the first section I, is to feed the filter cylinder, while the purpose of the second section 1, is to displace the pressed matter in the body of the filter or strainer cylinder and discharge the pressed matter.

The obturator disc is located between the feed section of the screw and the discharge section, preferably in the proximity of the inlet 3, of the fixed cylinder.

In the example shown, the obturator is provided with a bearing in which the axle which drives the sections 1, and l, of the helical screw revolves.

The bearing 5 also acts as a centering means for the extremities of the body of the screw 1, and 1 FIGS. 2, 3 and 4 illustrate an example of the particular construction of the obturator.

In this example the static obturator has a circular form; it includes also a continuous peripheral border 4, which is fixed with respect to the filter cylinder 3 of the press.

The obturator has the general form of a flange with two diametrically opposed openings 6, 7 in it. These openings are in the form of segments whose angle is more or less The result is that one opening is separated from the other by a solid part 8 and 9.

A characteristic feature of the invention is that one of the radial edges respectively 6,, 7, of each of the two openings of the obturator is cut at an angle.

Thus as is illustrated in FIG. 5, the edges cut at an angle 6, and 7, of the static obturator 4 form bevels facing upstream, i.e., the beveled edges 6, and 7, are facing toward the escape rim 1,, (FIG. 5) of section 1, of the feed screw. This escape rim 1, is the terminal portion of the first feed section 1, of the helical screw. This escape rim 1,, travels, during rotation, immediately adjacent to the upper or upstream plane of the static obturator 4, as seen in FIG. 1. Thus if by chance a hard object, for example made of metal and of small size is conveyed by the feed section 1, of the helical screw, the inclination of the helix and the edge cut at an angle of any of the openings of the obturator 4 enables said object to pass without causing damage to the obturator.

To ensure the good functioning of the obturator, the angle between the two sections of the helical screw is such that when the matter has been driven out by the escape rim 1, of section 1, of the feed screw through one of the openings of the obturator, the matter is caught up by the leading rim 1,, of the section 1, of the discharge screw; in this way a return of the matter toward the hopper is made impossible.

It is to be noted that in this application, the pressure exerted on each face of the obturated disc is evened out so that the disc does not become deformed. The replacement of the traditional obturators by the obturator described in this invention has a number of advantages. In particular, it eliminates the wear of the screw as the result of the elimination of the friction drive and the wear of the filter cylinder thanks to an intermediate bearing. The construction of the device according to the invention is simpler and consequently more economical.

Due to the nature of this obturator, the press can be used for matter which, because of their viscosity, could not be used with traditional continuous presses.

It is obvious that the invention is not limited to the examples of its applications herein above described and illustrated and that other variants can be envisaged on the basis of these embodiments within the scope of the invention. Thus, for example, the two sections of the screw can be in form of a single assembly unit, in which case the obturator can consist of two symmetrical parts which can be assembled around the axle of the screw.

I claim:

l. A continuous screw press having a helical feed screw for pressing the grape harvest into a filter cylinder, such press being characterized by a static obturator disposed in the path of the feed screw of the filter cylinder to prevent a return of the pressed matter upstream from the filter cylinder, said obturator comprising a disc corresponding to the diameter of the filter cylinder, the plane of said disc being perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the helical screw, said disc having two openings through which the pressed matter passes from above to below the obturator disc, each of said openings having the form of a sector, said two openings being diametrically opposed and being adjacent to the escape rim of the feed screw which in its rotation travels in the immediate proximity of the upstream plane of the obturator disc.

2. A continuous helical screw press according to claim 1, in which said openings of the static obturator are in the form of two diametrically opposed sectors, each of which has an angle of approximately 90.

3. A continuous helical screw press according to claim 1, characterized in that each opening of the obturator disc has a radial edge which is obliquely cut off to form a bevel which defines, with the upper plane of the obturator disc, an angle of more than 90 such that the beveled edges are facing upstream toward said escape rim.

4. A continuous helical screw press for the treatment of grape harvest matter comprising a strainer cylinder having a feed hopper associated therewith; a static obturator in the form ofa plane disc located in said cylinder downstream from said hopper, said static obturator being perpendicular to the axis of said cylinder; a helical feed screw having its axis of rotation extending along the axis of said cylinder for feeding and pressing the matter from the hopper into the cylinder; said helical screw having two sections with said static obturator disc being placed between said sections, one of said sections being a feed section associated with the hopper and being located upstream from said obturator disc, the other of said sections being a discharge section' located in he strainer cylinder downstream from said obturator disc and having a diameter corresponding with the diameter of said cylinder; said obturator disc having two openings diametrically opposite to each other; said screw feed section having an escape rim at the terminal end of the feed section which in its rotation travels in the immediate vicinity of the upstream surface of the obturator disc being at an angle about the axis of rotation with respect to the leading rim at the beginning of the discharge section of the helical screw which'travels in the immediate vicinity of the downstream surface of the obturator disc. 

1. A continuous screw press having a helical feed screw for pressing the grape harvest into a filter cylinder, such press being characterized by a static obturator disposed in the path of the feed screw of the filter cylinder to prevent a return of the pressed matter upstream from the filter cylinder, said obturator comprising a disc corresponding to the diameter of the filter cylinder, the plane of said disc being perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the helical screw, said disc having two openings through which the pressed matter passes from above to below the obturator disc, each of said openings having the form of a sector, said two openings being diametrically opposed and being adjacent to the escape rim of the feed screw which in its rotation travels in the immediate proximity of the upstream plane of the obturator disc.
 2. A continuous helical screw press according to claim 1, in which said openings of the static obturator are in the form of two diametrically opposed sectors, each of which has an angle of approximately 90* .
 3. A continuous helical screw press according to claim 1, characterized in that each opening of the obturator disc has a radial edge which is obliquely cut off to form a bevel which defines, with the upper plane of the obturator disc, an angle of more than 90* such that the beveled edges are facing upstream toward said escape rim.
 4. A continuous helical screw press for the treatment of grape harvest matter comprising a strainer cylinder having a feed hopper associated therewith; a static obturator in the form of a plane disc located in said cylinder downstream from said hopper, said static obturator being perpendicular to the axis of said cylinder; a helical feed screw having its axis of rotation extending along the axis of said cylinder for feeding and pressing the matter from the hopper into the cylinder; said helical screw having two sections with said static obturator disc being placed between said sections, one of said sections being a feed section associated with the hopper and being located upstream from said obturator disc, the other of said sections being a discharge section located in he strainer cylinder downstream from said obturator disc and having a diameter corresponding with the diameter of said cylinder; said obturator disc having two openings diametrically opposite to each other; said screw feed section having an escape rim at the terminal end of the feed section which in its rotation travels in the immediate vicinity of the upstream surface of the obturator disc being at an angle about the axis of rotation with respect to the leading rim at the beginning of the discharge section of the helical screw which travels in the immediate vicinity of the downstream surface of the obturator disc. 